The Fake Epiphone Thread!

[Sinmastah]

I have decided, thanks to an idea by GNR4EVR, to point out why guitars are fake guitars fake. Basically, currently I have 4 picures comparing real guitars to fake ones. I will then explain what is wrong with the fakes, and so when you are considering buying an Epiphone on eBay, this thread will help!



This picture has a few things wrong with it. Starting with the logo, on the fake it is tilted too much, an also look where the "h" is placed. On the fake it is almost directly below the middle, and on the real it is more to the right. Moving down, you look at the middle right tuner, and you can see that it is way to close to the edge, on the real it has more room. On the real guitar, the tuner does not overlap the binding at all, but on the fake it clearly does. Perhaps this is because of the oversized washers. Again moving down, looking at the TRC, make sure it is roughly the same size, the far left screw should be just below the 5th string (when in playing position). Also make sure the screws are legit size, they look decent in the fake picture though. Lastly on the headstock, it is very clear on the fake that the headstock is skewed, and not cut correctly. The angle of the picture screws this up a little, but you can still tell it is badly cut. Going more into detail, look at the placement of the "h". On the fake it is directly in the middle, but on the real guitar it is more to the right. Looking at the diamond, you can see that if you draw a line on the top of the two top tuners, the diamond should be a tad below that. On the fake it is not even close. This is shown also or the bottom of the two bottom tuners.



Now we move to the knobs, which in my oppinion is the easiest way to tell if a guitar is fake. Just do the thing that I did with the lines. If you draw two lines, intersecting the middle of the knobs, not only should they be parallel, but should also be parallel with the neck (Sg's will vary, but will still be parallel). Also look at the bottom of the bridge, if the guitar is in playing position, the knob should be a tab to the left of the bridge (if you are looking at the face of the guitar from across the room). Many fakes seem to be below the bridge. (Thanks to yr990099 for pointing this out)!



We now look at the pick-guard screw. Fakes generally have the screw very close to the edge of the guard, so look for that. On the real one, you can see it is more in the middle. Also look on the bottom of the photo, see how the pick-guard bends down on the real one? The fake one doesn't bend much.



If you look at the upper set of knobs, and draw a line through them, it should intercept the Pick-Guard screw. This should also help in determining where the Pick-guard screw should go, assuming your knobs are correct.

******WARNING SIGNS******
Here are a couple things to be cautious of when buying on eBay.
1. The guitar is stated as coming direct from the Epiphone factory.
2. The seller states that he does not have the guitar, and just has pictures from the supplier.

More to come!

I hope this helps anybody looking at buying a new Epiphone. I looked at pictures posted on this site for the fakes. I am looking for pictures of fake backs of guitars, looking at the control cavity covers. If anyone can suply me a pictures that would be great. Also please feel free to request any more pictures, I would be happy to post anything!

"***NOTE*** This thread only applies to 07 and up Made in China Epiphones. The only known fakes are 07 and up, if your Epi is a MIK or anything other than MIC you are fine."
__________________

[Kiwirocker]

srry i cant make ne sense on the first pic... do you care to elaborate lol

[Sinmastah]

Originally Posted by Kiwirocker

srry i cant make ne sense on the first pic... do you care to elaborate lol

I just fixed that, I had to post this, than edit while looking at the pictures in another browser so I could try to get full detail. All explanations are currently up!

[Guido]

thanks for this!
I think this is gonna help lots of people

[Sinmastah]

Originally Posted by guido.c

thanks for this!
I think this is gonna help lots of people

Thts the plan man! Also I am looking for bette headstock and Pick Guard photos. If someone can willingly submit photos of their headstock, it needs to be bound. I will need to take care of the pick-guard. For the headstock, please make it a direct shot, just like the fake picture. Like I said, it has to be bound and of course, REAL! Just email me, sportsguy0353@yahoo.com

[Kiwirocker]

now i gotta wait till monday to get my guitar... 99% sure its real though.. i wasnt nessesarly a cheep 1

[Guido]

Originally Posted by Sinmastah

Thts the plan man! Also I am looking for bette headstock and Pick Guard photos. If someone can willingly submit photos of their headstock, it needs to be bound. I will need to take care of the pick-guard. For the headstock, please make it a direct shot, just like the fake picture. Like I said, it has to be bound and of course, REAL! Just email me, sportsguy0353@yahoo.com

Id be happy to help, but my les paul hasnt arrived yet and itll be an elitist so it doesnt help at all

[Sinmastah]

Originally Posted by guido.c

Id be happy to help, but my les paul hasnt arrived yet and itll be an elitist so it doesnt help at all

True, I forgot to mention that, NO elitists will be on here for a short time, maybe in the future. The only main difference though is the headstock, and untill I see a pic of a fake Elitist, I can not do anything to show why it would be fake (obviously). BTW post some pics of yur elitist, wanna see it when it gets here!

[Tippsy-]

this thread needs to be stickied.

very useful info.
thank you.

[Sinmastah]

Originally Posted by Tippsy-

this thread needs to be stickied.

very useful info.
thank you.

No problemo, I requested a sticky from Flick, I asked him also if he thinks it should be moved into another forum, but I have a feeling it will stay here.

[Kiwirocker]

Originally Posted by Tippsy-

this thread needs to be stickied.

very useful info.
thank you.

yea i totally agree with you on that 1

very helpful

[dennistruckdriver]

Originally Posted by Sinmastah

I have decided, thanks to an idea by GNR4EVR, to point out why guitars are fake guitars fake. Basically, currently I have 3 picures comparing real guitars to fake ones. I will then explain what is wrong with the fakes, and so when you are considering buying an Epiphone on eBay, this thread will help!


I hope this helps anybody looking at buying a new Epiphone. I looked at pictures posted on this site for the fakes. I am looking for pictures of fake backs of guitars, looking at the control cavity covers. If anyone can suply me a pictures that would be great. Also please feel free to request any more pictures, I would be happy to post anything!

I applaud this effort, but there are those, even members on this forum, who will buy a fake regardless of what they know about its 'fakeness'. They just want to buy fakes, thinking they are getting some kind of 'good deal'.
Thanks from me for the time you put into this project.

[Guido]

Originally Posted by Sinmastah

True, I forgot to mention that, NO elitists will be on here for a short time, maybe in the future. The only main difference though is the headstock, and untill I see a pic of a fake Elitist, I can not do anything to show why it would be fake (obviously). BTW post some pics of yur elitist, wanna see it when it gets here!

I dont think we will see fake elitists, i think theyre much hard to fake...
and god, ill be posting loads of pics, but with a crappy 5mp olympus camera... then ill get to my father´s house and get much higher quality photos with his sony

[EpiClassic1790]

Are there supposed to be pictures in the original post? Maybe it's just because I'm using wi-fi in an airport, but I don't see any.

[Sinmastah]

Originally Posted by EpiClassic1790

Are there supposed to be pictures in the original post? Maybe it's just because I'm using wi-fi in an airport, but I don't see any.

Yeah they're there, maybe give it a minute or two to load.

[-Ninja-]

This is a great idea, and good shots of the differences.

Thanks.

[Sinmastah]

Originally Posted by -Ninja-

This is a great idea, and good shots of the differences.

Thanks.

Are those dice knobs on your LP? If so thats totally badass.

[Sinmastah]

Originally Posted by dennistruckdriver

I applaud this effort, but there are those, even members on this forum, who will buy a fake regardless of what they know about its 'fakeness'. They just want to buy fakes, thinking they are getting some kind of 'good deal'.
Thanks from me for the time you put into this project.

Thanks for the kind words. Also I know about people who don't care, but still even if there is that group of small people who need this info, it is time well spent. If someone makes 10 dollars an hour, and spends 400 dollars on a fake guitar, they wasted 40 hours. So it just helps a lot.

Also, I found something about, I posted a 4th pic, showing the knob placement in regard to the Pick-guard screw.

[yr990099]

the volume knobe in the real one is below the bridge where as in the fake one the volume knobe is in line with the bridge..look at the pics

[yr990099]

the real epiphone has a darker coloured neck whereas the fake one has a lighter colour wood. also the neck of the fake one un even tone..as you see in the pic

[Sinmastah]

Originally Posted by yr990099

the real epiphone has a darker coloured neck whereas the fake one has a lighter colour wood. also the neck of the fake one un even tone..as you see in the pic

Thanks for both of your points, I will take a deeper look into the fret board tomarrow, I will try to get accurate pics.

[Guido]

Originally Posted by yr990099

the real epiphone has a darker coloured neck whereas the fake one has a lighter colour wood. also the neck of the fake one un even tone..as you see in the pic

in that picture you can see how the f***ing inlays are out of place

[Dino]

Great stuff!

I also hear that the Diamonds on the headstock of a "real" epi custom is suppose to extend to the truss rod cover.

On the picture of your "fake" ... it does not.
Just anohter way to tell ... or so I hear.

I never knew ANY of this stuff until I joined this forum about a week ago.
You guys rock.

[Sinmastah]

Originally Posted by Dino

Great stuff!

I also hear that the Diamonds on the headstock of a "real" epi custom is suppose to extend to the truss rod cover.

On the picture of your "fake" ... it does not.
Just anohter way to tell ... or so I hear.

I never knew ANY of this stuff until I joined this forum about a week ago.
You guys rock.

Same here, I know how you feel.

Like I said, I need a picture of a headstock with the binding. Currently I do not hve such a picture.

[Guido]

Originally Posted by Sinmastah

Same here, I know how you feel.

Like I said, I need a picture of a headstock with the binding. Currently I do not hve such a picture.

I forgot that one! ill try to find a pic

[-Ninja-]

Originally Posted by Sinmastah

Are those dice knobs on your LP? If so thats totally badass.

No Sir, cream speed knobs.

[Sinmastah]

Originally Posted by -Ninja-

No Sir, cream speed knobs.

Oh, I know someone has dice knobs though.

[GNR4EVR]

Originally Posted by dennistruckdriver

I applaud this effort, but there are those, even members on this forum, who will buy a fake regardless of what they know about its 'fakeness'. They just want to buy fakes, thinking they are getting some kind of 'good deal'.
Thanks from me for the time you put into this project.

Nice job to all involved putting this together. I think this should be a must-read for all new members looking to get a new axe, so they dont get taken for a ride.
Be aware also that there are those carousing around this website trolling for things such as this, so as I learned and lived in the Navy for over 20 years... Loose lips sink ships. Some things dont need to get divulged right away, its better not to give away all of what we know, or they will learn and make their fakes even better. And by all means, post the counterfeiters newest tricks if noted here, its best to stay on top of what they are doing and whats changed from time to time.
PLease remember, if you report a fake on Ebay, make sure they get an email, and not just the item number, that only goes to a bot, but customer service gets the emails. Also, if you report a fake and post your findings here, please state whether you reported it or not, so everyone and their brother doesnt repeat, rinse, repeat, rinse again..LOL Happy Rockin!

[jkinnison90]

Good pictures. I hope people will look at this thread before they buy something off of eBay. Sometimes it's just better to spend the extra money and buy from an actual retailer instead of from eBay.

[goofballone]

hows this for a shot of the Peg head?